


love just happens when you least expect it (at any location, at any time)

by kayteedancer



Series: November Challenge [29]
Category: A Song of Ice and Fire - George R. R. Martin, Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: Aegon is a dick, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/M, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Rickon saves the day, Shireen gets stood up, Trope Soup
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-30
Updated: 2017-11-30
Packaged: 2019-02-08 17:31:02
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,686
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12869535
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kayteedancer/pseuds/kayteedancer
Summary: He was anhour late.Shireen stared gloomily at the white tablecloth, a polished nail tracing shapes in the voluminous fabric.  She had been so excited when Aegon (the Sixth) Targaryen had swaggered up to her in the library after their Psych class together and had asked her on a date. He had towered over her, his broad shoulders and easy grin and indigo eyes making butterflies swarm in her stomach and she had hardly stammered out a yes when he had scrubbed a hand over the back of his neck shyly (awkwardly, she now realized, embarrassedly) and asked her to meet him at The Citadel at 6:45 the next day.And here she was, all dolled up in the middle of The Citadel, one of King’s Landing’s nicer restaurants and a popular date night spot, still waiting on a guy an hour after they were supposed to meet.





	love just happens when you least expect it (at any location, at any time)

**Author's Note:**

> I was so close to having this out on time, but alas, Poor Yorick, I failed. Awful Shakespeare jokes aside, here's Day 29 for you all! The prompt for today was: _“Is this a joke?” “That was…not what I was expecting you to say.”_
> 
> I kept the prompt mostly intact for today, just fudged with the phrasing and added a few bits to make it flow smoothly in conversation. But it's there! I succeeded in filling a prompt! WOO!
> 
> I got Modern AU ASOIAF/GOT vibes for this one, specifically for Shireen/Rickon (RIP, babies, you were taken from us far too soon). So it's a Modern AU and a Fix-It! And it's a meet cute, fake dating thing. I went a little trope happy, but that's all part of the fun, right?
> 
> To all of you that have stuck with me for this challenge: thank you so, so much for being the rockstars you are! I have absolutely no idea what I would have done without you all encouraging me and motivating me. To those of you just joining us: hello! I've only got one more day to go after this one, but I hope you go back and read the rest of the challenge!
> 
> As always, I would love to hear what you all think. Feel free to come visit me on my tumblr (sleepeatdancedream) or comment/leave kudos on AO3! If you comment, I will always do my best to get back to you as soon as possible, and you will always get a reply. <3
> 
> Without further ado, I hope you enjoy Day 29!
> 
> Title is a quote by Suzy Kassem.

He was an _hour late_.

Shireen stared gloomily at the white tablecloth, a polished nail tracing shapes in the voluminous fabric.  She had been so excited when Aegon (the Sixth) Targaryen had swaggered up to her in the library after their Psych class together and had asked her on a date. He had towered over her, his broad shoulders and easy grin and indigo eyes making butterflies swarm in her stomach and she had hardly stammered out a yes when he had scrubbed a hand over the back of his neck shyly (awkwardly, she now realized, embarrassedly) and asked her to meet him at The Citadel at 6:45 the next day.

Shireen had been so excited that she had skipped her last class of the day, curling her hair just so to frame her face and hide her scars, applying makeup to both make them less noticeable and her more attractive, and had even pulled out a navy blue dress that she had bought a long time ago but never had the opportunity to wear.

And here she was, all dolled up in the middle of The Citadel, one of King’s Landing’s nicer restaurants and a popular date night spot, still waiting on a guy an hour after they were supposed to meet.

Shireen felt her lip start to quiver and forced her feelings down, willing the tears not to fall.

She didn’t know what to do now.  Should she get up and leave?  She hadn’t ordered anything, sticking to water with lemon as she waited for Aegon to arrive.  Would that be considered rude, though?  She had been taking up a table for an hour without ordering anything.

Shireen was yanked out of her thoughts as keys clattered to the tabletop across from her, a motorcycle helmet set down next to them.

“I’m so sorry, Sweetheart,” the person across from her apologized, reaching out to grab one of her hands and press a kiss to her knuckles quickly.  

Shireen looked up, ready to snatch her hand away and really let Aegon have it when she froze.

The person across from her was _not_ Aegon.

The man across from her had a crown of vibrantly red curly hair tousled atop his head, pale skin, a strong jaw, and the sharpest blue-grey eyes she had ever seen.  The man’s cupid’s bow mouth ticked up at the corner, his eyes serious even as he squeezed her hand.

“I was babysitting for my sister Sansa and her husband Sandor; they just had my niece, remember? Lyarra is just the cutest little thing,” the man rambled and Shireen nodded confusedly, unsure where this conversation was going.

“Anyway, they ended up being gone longer than I expected and by the time I went to text you to let you know I was going to be late, my phone was already dead.  I swear, Shaggydog eating my charger has been the biggest inconvenience ever,” the man continued.

Shireen finally understood what the man was playing at: he was helping her save face from being stood up.  “I told you not to leave your charger where Shaggydog could get to it. And next time, just use your sister’s phone, yeah?  I was worried,” Shireen playfully admonished, uncertainty shining in her eyes.

The man gave her a brilliant grin, running a hand through his curls and tousling them even more.  “Yeah, I know you did.  But there’s so few power outlets in my apartment and the one by Shaggy’s dog bed is just so _convenient_ ,” he whined, and Shireen laughed despite herself.

“Then you’ll just have to _conveniently_ buy yourself a new charger every few weeks,” Shireen teased and the man laughed in response.

“You’ve got me there.  I should just quit while I’m ahead, shouldn’t I?” he asked sheepishly, an irrepressible grin lighting up his features.

Shireen sniffed snootily.  “I can’t imagine why you would not listen to me,” she drawled, an upperclass lilt to her speech.  “After all, women always know best.”

The man tilted his head to the side with a smile.  “Of course, my Lady.  Women are the superior sex after all.”

Shireen dissolved into giggles as her waitress returned, shooting a nasty look at the (unfairly gorgeous) man (who was currently saving her butt) and a soft smile at her.  “Are you ready to order, Miss?”

“Yes,” Shireen chirped.  “I’ll have the Chicken Francese, please.”

“Sure thing,” the waitress replied before turning to Shireen’s dining companion.   “And you?” the waitress asked flatly, an unimpressed look on her face as she glared at the man.

“The Veal Piccata, thank you,” the man replied cheerfully.

Shireen fidgeted a bit awkwardly at the ensuing silence, aware of the man’s eyes on her.

“Well, how was work, Honey?” the man broke the silence, and Shireen smiled, relieved.

“It was work.  The librarian didn’t have too much for me to do today, so I worked on my Finance project.  You know, the one I was telling you about where we have to put together the funding and running budget for a startup?  I think I finally figured out the issue I was having…”

What proceeded was the best dinner (date? Could she call this a date even when the man sitting across from her was just bailing her out of being stood up?) she had ever had. The man across from her was sharp, witty, funny, and very loyal to his large, meddlesome, but well-intentioned family. His eyes never strayed from her own, neither to the dip of her cleavage nor toward the scars on the left side of her face, a refreshing change to what normally happened.  

Shireen was under no illusion that he simply didn’t notice her scars. She knew that they were still bright, still vivid, even though she had put makeup on them and styled her hair to draw attention away from them.

When dinner was over, he didn’t even hesitate before leaning over and swiping the check, smiling at her cheekily as a small pout twisted her lips.

The man laughed.  “I know you like to split, Angel, but you got your project finished and it sounds like it’s going to be amazing!  Let me spoil you,” he teased, and Shireen reached over and grabbed his hand in hers.

“Thank you,” she murmured, a blush lighting her cheeks.  The man smiled softly in response, squeezing her hand and nodding slightly.

As he pulled her chair out for her and ushered her out of the restaurant, Shireen was struck with an overwhelming sense of sadness. This was the best date she had ever had, and she was probably never going to see this man again after tonight.

A small, wry smile twisted her lips and tugged at the scar tissue on her cheek.  Isn’t that sad?  That this was the best dad she had ever been on and this man had only been here because he took pity on the girl getting stood up?

“So,” the man exhaled as they stopped by her car.  “I’m sorry if that was super awkward.  I just, I saw you sitting there, and you looked so sad -,”

Shireen felt anger rise in her abruptly, white-hot and raging.  “And what? You thought you would take pity on the ugly girl getting stood up on a first date?”

The man reeled back as if her words had physically slapped him.  “What?! No!” he exclaimed, his hands flapping through the air. “What do you mean, ugly?  You’re freaking gorgeous!  I thought you were going to laugh at me for sure when I sat down at your table.  You’re way out of my league!”

Shireen snorted derisively.  “Gorgeous?  Was that supposed to be a joke?”

“No!  It’s the truth!” he exclaimed again.  “You’re the most beautiful girl I’ve ever seen and I just had to talk to you, even if I was certain you were going to kick me out on my ass.”

Shireen blinked at him.  He seemed to be telling the truth. Her anger flooded out of her, confusion and hope warring within her as she asked tentatively, “You’re serious?  You saw the scars, right?”

The man lifted a hand to cup her chin, locking eyes with her.  “Yes. And?”

“And they’re ugly?” Shireen stated flatly, a bitter laugh trapped in her throat.  “They’re hideous.”

“They’re part of you,” the man stated simply.  “And you’re _beautiful_.”

Shireen blinked up at the man in wonder, words dying on her tongue.  The man’s thumb caressed her skin lightly, eyes serious and sincere as they bored into her own.

“That,” she stuttered after a while.  “That was… not what I was expecting you to say.”

Anger flashed in the man’s eyes and a snarl briefly curled at his lips.  “Everyone that would say otherwise are idiots and fools and don’t deserve you.”

Shireen felt tears well in her eyes.  The man’s face changed immediately, concern coloring his features.

“Are you alright?” he panicked.  “Did I say something wrong?”

Shrine gave a watery laugh.  “No, you said everything right,” she announced, the brightest smile on her face yet.

The man smiled and breathed a sigh of relief.  “Now, with all that being said, would you like to go on a real date with me sometime?  I would absolutely love to see you again, but maybe under better circumstances.”

Shireen nodded emphatically.  “I would love to…?” she trailed off.

“Rickon,” the man interjected.  “Rickon Stark.”

“I would love to go on another date with you, Rickon.  My name’s Shireen Baratheon.”

Rickon’s smile could light up an entire room it was so bright. “Shireen,” he breathed, like her name was the most precious thing he had ever said.  “I would very much like to kiss you now.  May I?”

Shireen’s cheeks hurt from smiling so much.  “You may,” she whispered, tilting her head up to his.

He captured her mouth softly with his own, chastely, but even so Shireen felt like she was flying.

Even though Aegon never showed, Rickon showed up right on time.  And she was looking forward to many more dates, and kisses, from where these came from.


End file.
